An undergraduate online course on Applied Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was developed through different formats of case study that included lecture, class discussion, small-groups discussion, and individual work. Cases covering health, biotechnology, agriculture, and other issues were developed or adapted from the literature to reach the…

A teaching team composed of a faculty member (lecture) and a graduate teaching assistant (lab) endeavored to engage students enrolled in several sections of the same organic chemistry course through the use of social media. Students were encouraged to follow both instructors on Twitter and were asked to share aspects of the class using the social…

This paper provides teachers and teacher educators with food for thought by developing a broad, contemporary re-evaluation of the often-used analogy between teaching and the theatre. It does so by synthesizing insights from scholarly works in education with insights from writing about theatre, including both historical work and published…

After spending several years investigating the needs of non-native English speakers in undergraduate courses at a large public university, it became apparent to Jenifer Rice that one of the main challenges facing these students is speaking up during large lecture classes. In such classes, two specific speaking skills students need are (1) asking…

This author discovered that his most powerful tool in the classroom was not to lecture, but to stop speaking at all. The effect of the resulting silence was even more positive than he could have imagined.

This article argues that lecture discourse has the capacity to support students in their transition into modes of social critique and that the lecturer, through an enactment of an academic identity in lecture discourse, plays a crucial role as both model and guide. Certain crucial phases and sub-phases of lectures are used to model an engagement…

This article presents an argument for the use of networked interactive whiteboards (NIWBs) in regional Australian higher education and identifies new pedagogies for this context. Most Australian universities operate multiple campuses, and many use video conference facilities to deliver courses across these sites. For students at remote video…

In spite of the ongoing discussion and emphasis on student voice, talk curriculum, and small group discussion (Barnitz 1994; Johnson & Johnson 1994; Barnes & Todd 1995; Johnston & Nicholls 1995; Johnson & Johnson 2000), most classroom language/discourse strategies remain rooted in Socratic premises. That is to say, official classroom discourse…

In a classroom research project, one college teacher experimented with a variation on conventional lecture method to improve student understanding of content. At logical points in the lecture, approximately 15-20 minutes apart, the lecturer pauses and directs students to review the material and paraphrase it in writing. Analysis of student notes…

Five communication strategies are essential to success in large courses: managing instructor anxiety, using presentation time efficiently, motivating students, communicating enthusiasm, and organizing content. (MLW)

One teacher's method of obtaining useful feedback from students in large lecture classes involves creation of a small committee of students, mirroring the class' diversity, that receives input from students on all course aspects, meets with the teacher to discuss and make recommendations, provides feedback on progression of the course, and reacts…

Addressing the problem of the language-related barriers to successful postsecondary education for underprepared college students, an assessment of academic language proficiency and a curriculum to help students improve their academic language skills were developed. The nature of the language tasks required in the undergraduate curriculum was…

A college teacher describes his approach to student subject-area writing, which includes assignment of several short papers to be written according to carefully prescribed guidelines (appended to the article), clear grading criteria, high expectations, availability for individual conferences, rewards for improvement, encouragement of writing for…

In a doctoral pharmacy course, student pairs were assigned presentations on topics related to specific anemias or blood disorders, and given one-and-a-half hours to present the material, with posters as visual aids, and to answer questions. The method is seen as promoting active learning, critical thinking, and professional presentation skills,…

Forms and characteristics of small group physics instruction in the Russian university are examined and in some cases, compared to those used in Britain. Topics discussed include the lecture method, classroom communication during lectures, postlecture discussion, specialized small-audience lectures, problem solving, individual research projects,…